On 2009 the Mayor of Rome, Mr. Giovanni Alemanno, has decided to devolve the generous Dan David Prize won by the City of Rome to the establishment of a Conservation Center in Acre. Additional support, in terms of consultancy and professional training, is provided by the Embassy of Italy in Israel and the Italian Ministry of Culture, which is assisting the Israel Antiquities Authority with a Memorandum of Understanding since August 2005.
On Thursday, May 13, the “International Conservation Center “Città di Roma” will be inaugurated. The Center Città di Roma will be managed by the Israel Antiquities Authority, in partnership with the Old Acre Development Company and Acre Municipality, with the support of the Italian Government and its Institutions. The activities provided by the Center will be directed to a broad range of participants – to the public in general and students in particular – and will include professional academic courses and projects of international cooperation. The inauguration ceremony, beginning at 18:00 o’clock, will be attended by the Italian ambassador to Israel, His Excellency Luigi Mattiolo, the Superintendent of Monuments and Cultural Properties of the City of Rome Professor Umberto Broccoli, the director-general of the Israel Antiquities Authority Mr. Shuka Dorfman, the Director-General of the Old Acre Development Company Mr. Dudu Harari, the deputy director of the Economic Company in the Acre municipality, Mr. Ben Mayost, the Custos of the Holy Land Fr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Senior Representatives of the City of Rome, scholars and experts from Universities and Museums and others.
